Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a processing chamber and cleaning methods.
Description of the Related Art
Substrate processing chambers provide a wide variety of functions. Often, when depositing dielectric layers on the substrate, the residue from the deposition process collects on the walls and other surfaces of the processing chambers. These deposits may become friable and contaminate the surface of the substrate. Because the chambers are usually part of an integrated tool to rapidly process substrates, it is essential that maintenance and cleaning of the chambers require minimum time. To reduce the likelihood of contamination and thus improve the throughput of the chambers, effective and timely cleaning the surfaces of the chambers is desirable.
Currently, the mechanism for removing silicon or carbon containing deposits from the surfaces of the chamber include remote plasma clean, in situ RF plasma clean, or RF-assisted remote plasma clean. Remote plasma with fluorine containing gas may be used for cleaning the chamber surfaces. For example, a cleaning gas NF3 may be remotely ignited into a plasma and the radicals from the plasma are introduced into the chamber to etch away film deposited on the chamber surfaces.
However, the cleaning rate of the chamber surfaces is not uniform due to the way the radicals flows inside the chamber. Therefore, an improved apparatus and cleaning method is needed to enhance the cleaning rate of processing chambers.